Rain Gods

With the FBI, Immigration and Customs Enforcement, and a host of cold-blooded killers on the trail of an Iraq veteran and his girlfriend, it's up to Texas Sheriff Hackberry Holland (cousin of Billy Bob Holland) and his deputy Pam Tibbs to find them first and figure out who's behind a mass murder of illegal aliens before anyone else ends up dead.

JLB's usual, which is to say VG to excellent. You get the usual atmospherics--never a dull weather day in Burkeland--wonderful dialogue, nine unforgettable characters--for all of whom one cheers--and a strong endorsement of aging with grace and power. Then there's the violence and the sewer-gas smell of death. I'd like to read this book again in Texas (where I used to live) because I think the pages would turn themselves.